An Introduction to Government Ms. Walker AP US Government Essential Questions What is Political Power? What is Democracy? Is Representative Democracy the best system? How is Power Distributed? How is Political Power Distributed? Is Democracy Driven by Self- Interest? What Explains Political Change? What is the Nature of Politics ? I study government and political processes, institutions, and behavior. Modern political science stresses the importance of using political concepts and models that are subject to empirical validation and that may be employed in solving practical political problems. Adapted from: Long Beach Unified School District GATE What is Government? Vocabulary 1.Government-An institution with the power to make and enforce a societies laws. 2.State-A territory whose population maintains an organized governmental body that regulates internal and external affairs (population, territory, sovereignty, government) 3.Citizen-An officially recognized member of a state 4.Sovereignty-The absolute authority that a government has over its citizens 5.Law-A set of rules, issued and enforced by a government, that binds every member of society 6.Public Policies-Decisions and laws that a government makes in a particular area of public concern-education, health Origins of Government The rightful authority that any government has over its citizens is legitimacy. Legitimacy is very difficult to achieve and maintain. Every government exercises 3 kinds of power: 1.Legislative power -to make law 2.Executive power -the power to execute, enforce, and administer the law 3.Judicial power -The power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within society Power and Legitimacy Parliament Building, Athens, Greece Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker Defining Power Authority Control Elite Coercion Supremacy Command Dominance Influence Clout The Acropolis, Athens Greece Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker 2009 Power: The capacity to effect outcomes Who has the Power? 1.Primary Elites: Officials who have significant decision making authority and control over government decisions. Cult of Personality: The excessive adulation of a single leader (Mao Zedong) 2.Secondary Elites: Those members of society who are not in government but wield power through their associations (trade unions, large corporations, media, etc.) 3.Political Society: Politically active members of society 4.Masses: The rest of the population Political Power and Legitimacy Legitimacy: The right to rule Legitimacy may be secured in a number of ways: 1.Constitutions 2.Tradition 3.Force 4.Social compacts 5.Ideologies Washington, DC Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker, 2009 Max Weber Max Weber Born April 21, 1864 (Erfurt Germany) Died June 14, 1920 (Munich Germany) German Philosopher and sociologist Wrote Politics as a Vocation The State is that entity which possesses a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force, which it may nonetheless elect to delegate as it sees fit. Weimar, Germany Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker, 2009 Max Weber Authority: occurring when there is a probability that people will obey a specific command. Legitimate Authority: occurring when people obey the authority because they regard it as obligatory. Photo Copyright: Clipart.com Webers Three Types of Legitimate Authority 1.Traditional Legitimacy: Tradition should determine who should rule and how (Monarchy) Queen of England Summer Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker. 2009 Webers Three Types of Legitimate Authority 2. Charismatic Legitimacy: Based on the dynamic personality of an individual leader or small group (Napoleon) Waterloo, Belgium Photo Copyright: Kelly Walker, 2009 Webers Three Types of Legitimate Authority 3. Rational-Legal Legitimacy: Legitimacy is based on a system of well established laws and procedures. Highly institutionalized and the people obey the leaders based on an acceptance of the Rule of Law. Photo copyright: Clipart.com Rational-Legal Legitimacy Found primarily in democracies Most prevalent type of legitimacy in the modern world People accept the concept of a continuous state which binds them together as a nation Photo Copyright: Clipart.com The State Dominate Political Unit of the World 1.Population 2.Territory 3.Sovereignty: it has supreme and absolute power within its own territory and can decide its own foreign and domestic policies 4.Government Where did it all begin? Ancient Greece BC. The traditional government of ancient Greece was a monarchy, however, it died out by 505 BC and was replaced by a democracy. Greece is famous for being the first true democracy, where citizens held elections and voted on laws. Rome BC Roman nobility overthrew their king and set up a republic in his place; a system of government where power was divided into a Senate for nobles and an Assembly for commoners. John Locke Wrote Of Civil Government and established the concept of Natural Rights-A right that is considered to belong to all people, regardless of time or place: Being natural to everyone and are not granted or taken by a government. (inalienable rights) The Enlightenment Thinkers Thomas Hobbs-English Leviathan-Developed the idea of a social contract- The theory that the people give up their sovereignty in exchange for peace and order that is provided by the state. Baron De Montesquieu French, wrote On the Spirit of Laws. He believed that there should be a Separation of Powers to have an effective government. (A distribution of powers among the branches of government.) Jean Jaques Rousseau (Swiss) 1.The social contract between citizens and government was important. 2.Morals and emotion should play a role in government 3.Forefather of modern communism- attacked private property The Purpose of the US Government Two main Questions: 1.How should we govern? 2.What should government do? Form a more perfect union-the constitution Establish Justice- Rule of Law Insure Domestic Tranquility- preserve order Provide for the common defense Promote the general welfare- provide public services Collect taxes Socialize the Young Forms of Government No Government is alike. 3 Classifications of Governments: 1.Who may participate 2.Distribution of power within the state 3.Relationship between executive and legislative branches Sources of Authority Monarchy Head of state is a hereditary position Constitutional Monarchy- King or queen is only the ceremonial head of state Real power lies in another branch of government Republic (Democratic) People are the source of authority Government is made up of representatives elected by the people Dictatorship - (authoritarian-rulers answer only to themselves, not the people) Political and/or military power, wealth and/ or social position are the source of leaders authority Power is achieved and maintained through force Autocracy-rule by one Oligarchy-rule by many Extreme Dictators are Totalitarian rulers-seek complete control over all aspects of citizens lives Power Among Levels of Government Unitary System Central Government holds all legal power Local government has no independent power; carries out decisions made by the central government Great Britain Federal System National, state, and local governments share power All levels have power to establish their own laws, elect officials, and create agencies United States Confederal System Independent states join together Each state is represented in a central organization. Central organization carries out policies made by representatives UN, European Union Power Within Levels of Democratic Governments Presidential System A system of government in which the legislative and executive branches operate independently of each other. United States Parliamentary System A system of government in which power is concentrated in a legislature. The legislature selects one of its member s, a prime minister, as the nations leader. Great Britain Benefits of Democracy 1.Worth of the Individual 2.Equality of all persons- 3.Majority rule, minority 4.Necessity of Compromise 5.Individual freedom Forms of Democracy Direct Democracy A system in which laws may be made directly by all citizens. Clubs, small organizations, SCA Representative Democracy A system of government in which the people choose political leaders to make policy decisions on their behalf. United States, Great Britain Government and the Free Enterprise system The American economic system is based on the Free Market. The US has a mixed economy, where private enterprise exists in combination with a considerable amount of government regulation. Who Should Govern? How do we Solve our Problems? Who governs and why? How does Government affect our lives? Keefe, Mike. "Border Wall." Cartoon. The Denver Post. 29 Mar Dec http://www.intoon.com/index.cfm Political Power Power: The ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first persons intentions Authority: The right to use power Legitimacy: Political authority conferred by law or by a state or national constitution What Constitutes Legitimate Authority? Should the Government provide Health Care? How is Political Power distributed? Majoritarian Politics: Leaders are sharply constrained by what most people want so that the actions of officeholders will follow the preferences of citizens closely. How is Political Power distributed Pluralist View: No single entity has the power: There are too many of them! /madison.htm/madison.htm The belief that competition among all affected interests shapes public policy. Resources remain divided among such different kinds of elites that all, or almost all, relevant interests have a chance to affect the outcome of decisions. Political Power Marxist View: Government is a reflection of underlying economic forces Power Elite View: Power held in a few Bureaucratic View: Power held by appointed officials Democracy Is Democracy Driven by Self-Interest? What Explains Political Change?